Dillian Whyte outpoints Joseph Parker, earns unanimous decision win

Dillian Whyte was able to set himself up for a potential huge payday, presumably a rematch against Anthony Joshua, by defeating Joseph Parker this weekend.

This Saturday in London, Dillian Whyte was able to earn a unanimous decision victory over former champion Joseph Parker. Whyte and Parker both suffered their only defeats at the hands of Anthony Joshua, and both desperately needed a win in order to stay relevant in the division.

Whyte came to fight, dropping Parker twice in the fight. However, in the final minute of the final round, Parker was able to drop and hurt Whyte, despite being down on the cards. It was a dramatic moment, with many feeling Whyte was not going to make it to the final bell.

Despite being hurt, Whyte was able to pick himself up off the canvas, and survive long enough to hear the judge’s scorecards, all of which had him winning the fight, with scores of 113-112, 115-110 and 114-111.

It was an entertaining fight, which is usually the case when two top fighters from a division fight each other. Following the win, Whyte has put himself in position to get a big fight, presumably a rematch with Anthony Joshua.

Their first fight was in 2015, and saw Joshua earn a TKO in the seventh round. Despite being stopped, Whyte had his moments, and was even able to hurt Joshua.

While Joshua is currently slated to fight Alexander Povetkin in September, he also announced that he will be fighting again in April, with an opponent to be named.

The whole world would prefer a fight with Deontay Wilder that date, or even a U.K. mega-fight with Tyson Fury, but a rematch with Dillian Whyte would be a decent alternative.

If Whyte does not get the Joshua rematch next, he could maybe look towards a rematch with veteran Dereck Chisora, who earned a TKO victory over Carlos Takam on the undercard of Whyte-Parker. Whyte and Chisora fought in 2016, which ended in a split decision that went Whyte’s way.

As for Parker, it is time to go back to the drawing board. His claim to fame was earning a vacant belt when he defeated Hughie Fury, a fight in which he did not particularly impress. Since earning that belt, he took a step up in class, facing Joshua and Whyte, and losing both bouts.

He is not a bad fighter, but taking a step up, and losing back to back fights is not a great look. He needs to regain confidence, and take on a few fights against lesser opponents before coming back to the top-level contenders.

He has some skills, so a bounce back is not out of the question for him, and it will be interesting to see if he works his way back into the heavyweight conversation.

No one is certain how the heavyweight division will shake out. The two champions at the top, Wilder and Joshua, appear to be on a collision course, but nothing is guaranteed in this sport. Besides them, there are the likes of Tyson Fury, Luis Ortiz Bib Baby Miller and Dillian Whyte, all of which are patiently for a chance to dethrone either heavyweight champion.

It appears boxing’s glamour division is back to being competitive, and figures to provide fans some exciting fights in the coming years.